GOD PAMPHLET
URUHA another myself
Interview
Uruha: As first thing, the meeting regarding the photoshoot for this Pamphlet took place during the FC only tour. The designer, Yoda-san, said "think about what do you think 'division' is", he told that like he was giving us homeworks. *laugh* I thought "Ah I got it, interesting.." but it was really hard too. From the point of view of the meaning of the work, isn't it something like "scission" or something similar? Even if I was looking for an answer based on that, I couldn't find anything. Moreover, I couldn't come up with an other word to replace 'DIVISION' with. In the end I realized that, since inside of me only one realty was left -which was: "we made an album"-, I thought it was better to express this concept. The album we made this time, since it something we created 'carving out' our actual selves, it can be seen as something that basically express ourselves. So I thought at a 'mirror'. Division, for me it's a mirror, that was my conclusion. Despite that, there wasn't a way to take photos placing a mirror. Moreover, I had no idea how to represent this concept.
Interviewer: So, how did you come up with such an imposing photoshooting?
Uruha: Well, the designer developed my idea. In the first place we rented the terrace of a building, we spread out silver aluminum and then we took photos as if that was the mirror.
Interviewer: I'm feeling hot just imagining the scene.
Uruha: It was awfully hot. *laugh* When I actually tried to stand there, it was like I was in a oven. *laugh* Speaking of the outfit, I was wearing a kind of suit. I thought "let's get over with these photos!". I was incandescent like I was generating electricity. *laugh* Luckly, we managed to take awesome photos. After that I came back to the studio and they told me that this time I had to take photos surrounded by squared mirrors that will become like a whole magic mirror.
Interviewer: It was like being inside a kaleidoscope?
Uruha: Exactly. Moreover, the cameraman, Hirano-san, was trying to bring us slowly to an unpleasant direction. *laugh* To get things worst, being surrounded by mirrors is really tiring. I don't know quite know the reason, I was the feeling like everything was spinning.
Interviewer: I see, however Yoda-san took out a really complex theme!
Uruha: I really was complicated. *laugh* Since the same homework was given to all members, could we ponder even in moments when we couldn't keep from laughing? At the same time, I thought "could it happen that we come up with the same idea?" I think that if something like this happens, it could just be when a theme on such an obvious argument is given and you end up taking it slightly. However, if we can really find a concept about "DIVISION" according to ourselves, it's impossible for the ideas to correspond.
Interviewer: A job in which you reflects like in a mirror. I think that in each album there's something like that, however speaking of DIVISION you can feel in particular and very pronounced this nature, can't you?
Uruha: Without any doubts, since each time we think we want to do a certain thing. However as time goes by this experience mirrors itself on different things. This mirror is like a mirror inside the imagination. I could even say that it reflects my real self.. for example, speaking of this album, if ideals and things I'd like to do are embodied in DISC 2, speaking of DISC 1 you could say that it mirrors the reality. Moreover, the mirror symbolizes the image that we harbor etc… it's like to say "the things we'd like to do are in a certain way, however the image that fans see is different". You can perceive that reading opinions that arrives through fan mails. For example, when we want to go ahead towards a new direction, we work having crystal clear in mind the new image. However, inside fans' mind there's still the image till that point. This kind of deviation is interesting but sometimes is sad too. Because, no matter what we'll do, I think without any doubts that this deviation will keep on existing. Of course in the proportion of some people there's a difference between the ones who are coherent and the size of this deviation.
Interviewer: I think it's unluckily that fans and band could evolve at the same peace and speed.
Uruha: Yes. It's probably impossible. Moreover, this difference can't be calculated.
Interviewer: Perhaps this can be said inside the band itself.
Uruha: Exactly, it's not possible to be all the same. I don't know if it's momentary but basically we should be similar however there are times when we are completely different. So, of course, there's this kind of gap. Moreover, I think there are times when you can't cancel this gap.
Interviewer: For sure. However it's really interesting. Thinking about the shade of significance of a piece made by your band, you had the possibility to deeply reflect on other sides beside the musical aspect.
Uruha: It's rather a spiritual side. However I can say that even I had fun doing all of this.
Interviewer: You have the feeling that the chasing of ideal and reality is something without an ending. However, in the past, there had to be a time when -even imagining it- you couldn't even get near that. Compared to the past, now can't you say that the reality and the ideal arrived near to each other?
Uruha: If we try and interpret it in a positive way, it can probably be as you say. However, reaching such a point of reality consciousness.. I think it's a consequence of this age. Since we know we can obtain -in a second- a plethora of various information, if we try and search for something we know nothing about, couldn't we comprehend it? For example, if we'd like to know what people, who went see us when we took part to a festival, really think, we could easily find out about it. I think it's really practical, however there are things that it would be better not to know at all from the start too. There's a part of people who ended up loving festival when they know strange things happened.
Interviewer: If you understand that the reaction was awesome, everything becomes more natural.
Uruha: When you find people you don't know saying something like "I had fun!" or "I didn't expect that but it was great!" etc. You realize that there are lots of people without prejudices towards this type of music or Visual Kei, that's why it makes me happy taking part to festivals and it became amusing for me too. However, in the end it made me realize that probably I was the one being influenced. *laugh* It happens this too.
Interviewer: Speaking of the reality in this way, I think it's good thinking that it's something favorable. It's the same for forecasts?
Uruha: Yes, but sometimes it's unpleasant. Being able to comfortably obtain information changes you. Basically I've a negative nature. *laugh* That's why if I generally know nothing I have a propensity for thinking negatively and probably my works too would become darker.
Interviewer: In other words it means that, in this way, you find yourself in a "original" situation. You are able to create something that should be born in a completely natural way from yourself? Does it means it's more difficult to create in a direct way?
Uruha: When you hear positive opinions, aren't you more confident? So the result is that your work too will be full of that confidence. I think that this is really positive of course. However, it can also be that this is not your 'real' self.
Interviewer: Does it mean that in the end you can feel a bit of regret?
Uruha: It happens that I feel like I'm not completely satisfied. I think "I'm not being able to fully pull out the real turbid side that should be inside of me". It's like a feeling where the fog is dissolving mysteriously. This, I think, it's not bad… but..
Interviewer: It probably means that when it's reflecting in that mirror is something different from Division, even if you are trying to reflect the actual Uruha in that mirror that doesn't have any shadows nor distortions.
Uruha: How can I say it..? If I hadn't been influenced at all, in a situation in which I can't at all hear information, other opinions, etc.. maybe the band wouldn't be what it is now since before Division. If we hadn't hear anything, voices around us, who knows what we would have become? If it wasn't for those voices, maybe we wouldn't even had the desire to be what we are now. It's a strange subject but I've the feeling that if we had been people who weren't influenced at all, we wouldn't mature at all in this way and the way of being of the band itself tells the different influences experienced. I've the feeling that I've just said something extraordinary. *laugh* Interviewer: I think I know what you mean. What kind of people and what they think of you? And even if you wouldn't like to now, in the end you find out about that. This is for sure a current worry in contemporary society.
Uruha: It's exactly because we are in the middle of this kind of society. And since time moves on we can't do anything about it. Ultimately, there's the freedom of not joining the system of the so called social networks. Maybe it's because when I wanted to join visual kei this kind of things didn't exist? However, precisely because I was a fan, I dreamed about various things and I think this made the charisma of the artist much stronger. Everything was in the world of imagination. In particular, I think that probably this tendency was very strong in the visual kei world. People thought things like "That guy sure as hell don't go to the toilet." *laugh* I couldn't even image (the artist) eating or something similar. But this was the fun. Probably the imagination ability is much stimulated through printed interviews and such than showing vivid images through videos ecc. In these days things like these aren't disappearing? Now you can see everything. This is why I don't use SNS [1], I've a vibe that opposes against this. Since I'm an artist I can't think it makes sense to show a reality that should be better not to show, or the production process in a precise way etc. Even if from that you could take joy, I think that this is just an extremely superficial joy.
Interviewer: It happens too that the distance between you and the listeners shortens considerably.
Uruha: That too, it comes out a part that will get damaged because you are showing your naked self. I think this is just a spoiler [2]. Moreover, I think that because of that the listener stops using their imagination. For example, if I wrote regularly daily routines of my live, fans could think "ah it's a completely normal guy". In reality I'm a normal human being and there are pros of being a common person too. *laugh* However, I think that not showing this side is something good in today's visual key. But at the same time, since there's not a more comfortable way of gathering information, even I use it daily. Of course I feel the contradiction. This is without any doubts this is the world described in IBITSU lyrics. That world is certainly that song. For now, I think that probably is expected that that song exists. In reality, even when I didn't think about all of that, it happened that I wanted to make a single out of that song. But that didn't happen. I thought "Pulling this song out during the meeting for this album's songs isn't maybe the right time for this song?"
[1] Social Networking Service
[2] He means something that shouldn't be shown.
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